by NEOnline | GK President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, is expected to meet today with Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Putin has chosen Hungary for his first state visit to an EU state since the beginning of the Ukrainian crisis a year ago. Russian news agency, RT, cited the Kremlin press service which said that talks of the Russian and Hungarian leaders will focus on bilateral economic and trade relations, and in particular a nuclear energy deal signed in December. Associated Press, reported that the Hungarian PM is seeking a good price for the Russian gas, as well as assurances that Russia will make good on the loan promise. The nuclear deal between Hungary and Russia caused concern to many officials in the West. Hungary has taken the loan from Russia to upgrade its ageing nuclear power plant. Russia is Hungary’s largest trade partner outside of the 28-nation EU, with exports worth $3.4 billion in 2013. Budapest is also highly dependent on Russian energy, both gas and oil refined products. Russia supplies approximately 80 percent of the oil products and 70 percent of the natural gas consumed by Hungary. Hungary’s Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said last week that the country’s energy security depends on negotiating with Russia. The two countries, might discuss about the new Turkish Stream project. In January Szijjarto stated that Hungary is looking forward to delivering Russian natural gas through a new pipeline via Turkey. "We want to start negotiations as early as possible when Turkey decides to purchase natural gas from Russia. We want to start negotiations on how some portion of this natural gas can be transported to central Europe through Turkey,” Szijjarto said during his visit to Turkey, as cited by China Daily. According to RT, Hungary is already in talks with Serbia and FYROM on the new natural gas delivery route that might pass from Turkey to Hungary through a Greece-FYROM-Serbia pipeline. Besides energy, Political analyst Peter Kreko told Euronews that the Russian President could have a lot to gain if the Budapest visit goes his way. “For Putin the most important thing is sending a message to the world that it pays off to be a friend of Russia, and he could also be hoping that Hungary might be the country who will break up the unity of the EU (over Ukraine),” Kreko explained. Hungary, together with some other EU Member States, such as Czech Republic and Slovakia do not support the increasing pressure towards Russia through the implementations of more sanctions by the EU. The EU countries argue that the Russian sanctions had backfired at their national economies. Hungarian Economy Hungary managed to overcome the 2008 devastating and socially catastrophic economic crisis and according to OECD, the country has exited from recession in early 2013, but weak growth remains. According to CIA World Factbook, in 2010 the new government led by Orban implemented a number of different economic policies which helped the Hungarian economy to revive. In 2012, the Hungarian government rejected EU and IMF economic policy recommendations and turned to the international markets to obtain funds. “Global demand for high yield has since helped Hungary to obtain funds on international markets. Hungary’s progress reducing its deficit to under 3% of GDP led the European Commission in 2013 to permit Hungary for the first time since joining the EU in 2004 to exit the Excessive Deficit Procedure,” World Factbook stresses.
 |
| READ THE ORIGINAL POST AT www.neurope.eu |